After building so many LEGO customs based on video games and movies, and after seeing so many awesome LEGO customs here on MOCpages that are NOT based on such things, I have decided to expand my horizons and let my imagination free at last! Okay, maybe I'm being melodramatic, but what I mean is I'm going to make up my own faction in the great LEGO wars: The Armed Forces of Xarkon. I tried doing this a while back, but it was no good. I've scrapped most of my old Xarkon customs and started anew. I decided to start with the biggest project I had in mind, FIRST! So now I give you, the Manegarm... personal walker of Lucas Mars, High Commander of the Armed Forces of Xarkon.

When Lucas Mars, High Commander of the Armed Forces of Xarkon, commissioned the building of his personal walker, he told the designers one thing: "Make me invincible." High Commander Mars insisted that his walker be made of solid black metal, unlike the usual red and black of standard Xarkon walkers. The designers warned him that this would draw attention to him during battles, but he said that was the very reason he wanted it there. To draw the foolish to his firepower, and to make the wise keep their distance...

The project that lasted for months thereafter was to build a walker called Manegarm, Lord of the Wolves. The idea was to take the best aspects of the standard Wolf, Xarkon's heaviest walker, and combine it with newer technologies and top-grade weapons and armor. The name Manegarm comes from the ancient Norse mythology of Earth. Manegarm was the fabled greatest of all wolves, who howled at the moon every night until the coming of Ragnarok, the end of the world. According to the legend, when that fated day came, Manegarm would leap into the air, pull the moon from the stars, and devour it.

One of the main new technologies integrated into the design was the "Fox ear" Infiltrator Dishes. Two of them were placed on the Manegarm's head, unlike the single radar ear on the Fox, Xarkon's lightest recon walker. The Manegarm was to be Lucas Mars's "flagship" in a sense, his base of operations while on the battlefield. The Fox Ears allowed him to "hear" all that was going on and give commands as necessary. His high vantage point also gave him a great view of the battlefield, and the rail gun was the perfect long-distance devastating weapon.

The Manegarm is a walking arsenal. It is armed with armor-piercing ballistic slug cannons on its left arm, a plasma emitter cannon on its right arm, a rail gun on its right shoulder, a missile rack on its left shoulder, a pair of heavy armor-piercing rotating machine guns on either side of the head, and finally, and a Firestorm cannon in its opening maw. If you look at some of the pictures, you can see where the giant shells come flying out of the dual cannons on its left arm.

When I started building the LEGO of Manegarm, I wanted to build the biggest, baddest, most wicked-looking black mech ever. If there was anything I could do to make it look as downright impressive as possible, I'd try to do it. I decided upon the trans-red canopy pretty quickly once I saw how awesome it looked against solid black.

Some people will doubtlessly not like my decals. Well, I think they add a fantastic finishing touch to any LEGO custom. There are five emblems of the Crown of Xarkon on Manegarm. Can you find them all? And, of course, there is also the "MANEGARM" lettering on the legs. This image shows the Technic design I used for the legs. You can probably see how they work. It was the only thing I could come up with that would hold up this much weight!

The legs were by FAR the hardest part. I wanted the legs to be animal-like, like a wolf, so I made them have joints somewhat like a wolf's hind legs. These legs also can support a lot of weight. I went through at least three different leg designs before I found one that actually worked. First I tried just using the same Titan XP type joints as on the arms, but they wouldn't hold it up at all. After that, I tried the good old clicky joints, but they weren't much better. I even tried tossing in Bionicle ball-and-socket joints, but they were even worse.

High Commander Lucas Mars looks a lot like Captain Keyes, doesn't he? I already had a design for the character in mind, so I knew what I wanted him to look like: a stern military commander, clean shaven, wearing solid black. The helmet is made to match his walker. Rumors say that Mars actually is able to climb up the Manegarm's leg to reach the cockpit for quick entry when an entry ladder is not nearby to help him.

This is now my favorite of all my LEGO customs. It's bigger and more impressive than even my Metal Gear RAY and TIE Defender. This is actually the first custom I've made that I've ever used "new grey", AKA "bley" pieces on...

Concept art, anyone? Yeah, it's really sloppy, but I was just jotting ideas down as they came to me. You can see in the upper right corner how I was trying to make the silhouette of the Manegarm look like the Crown of Xarkon. There are also scrapped weapon ideas and older designs for different body parts too.

Here's one I drew AFTER I was finished with the project... By the way, rate this less than four smileys and I won't subject you to "The Visit." Instead, you'll get "The Stay." Yes, I know, I've been reading too much Iron Reich propaganda.

In reply to arc trooper: So you counted off two smileys because you thought I'd drawn myself getting shot in this sketch...? Well, if it's any comfort, it isn't me. It's actually supposed to be a Victorian soldier, but I didn't really know what to make them look like yet.

One of the coolest mechs I'v ever seen!
It acually looks like a wolf, but I guess that what you were going for anyway.
Could you please check this out???
http://www.mocpages.com/home.php/71834
My creations aren't nearly as good as yours, but could you at least check them out?

i like it very nice design. i thought for a moment that it would be cool if it could walk on all fours like a wolf but stand up in battle mode while where the driver is the cockpit could move into different positions

whow! very impressive! I love that right arm and those legs are good thinking!I'll come back for a quick peek for my next installment of mechs, by the way: have you seen them? please let me know what you think...

Congrats on making MOC Of The Day, September 16th, 2008! One of the first fan-made themes I came across a few years ago was yours, and this was the most impressive build I saw at the time. I can't believe I haven't checked out your MOCpage until now.

This is by far one of the most amazing custom creations i have seen. I saw it on your website and was literally dumbfounded. Just the size, the stance, and of course the weapons, its an amazing machine.

I like it

Nick West

August 18, 2007

Woo hoo, Creation of the day. I like the Manegarm, although with all the great creations around lately, you may have to make a V2.0, to keep up. I suppose there isn't much to say about it, its great. You gotta get rid of that review from Aug. 3rd though, people who make me scroll over annoy me.

I like it

Alexander Straczek

August 18, 2007

I really cant say much that no one else has said below me so I'll just say that it's the greatest mech on 2 legs...i like the background story cause it gives it character and I think it needs more guns... (yeah right!)

Hey Scorp! Its me Archon from sslf! I can say, this is a perfect MOC! You should defenitly work for LEGO, you'd be awesome. Well, this isn't my favourite MOC (as in coolness) My fav is thew Valkyrie, but, the best moc on this website as always!

Youre like Don Corleone himself (the godfather 1-2-3 anyone??), you really are the godfather of all moc's i wish i could make a moc like that..keep going, i hope you make a mech like that for Victory because victory is allready the best in aerospace, all whats left is the walkers-section, nice work

i love your moc!!!!!!! i liked it so mutch i built my own version, not as detaild but still cool BUT YOURS RRRRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOOKKKKKKKKKKKKKKSSSSSSSSSSS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I WASNT QUITE ABLE TO GET THE LEGS RIGHT MEANING THAT THEY WONT MOVE WITHOUT CAUSING THE MECH TO COLAPS, THIS IS DUE TO MY LACK OF LEGOS AND THE FACT THAT I AM TWELVE AND CANT GET ALL THE LEGOS I WISH I COULD GET .

This thing kicks! Just standing still it looks like it's ready to jump right out of my monitor and do some damage. I think you have done an excellent job on the Xarkon "Manegarm" Command Walker and I'm impressed with all the background info you provide ... the entire presentation is really enjoyable!

one of the best creations you made.So right now Im probaly building a matching army of your xarkon army except its blue and white Ill post it asap.anyway all you need to do now is build a army of enemys to vs the xarkons

I think that you just completed the most superb smack-down available to a mech of this calibur. Nice design and unlike most other recent mechs... the cockpit with the nose pointed downwards gives it that menacing look... like "run like dogs away from me, or I shall stop you flat, and hurl your dead carcass into the trees"... Nicely done! ~ Paul.

Scorp-man, it's been a while. A WHILE. Do you know how long that is? Almost as long as "The Stay". And yes, haven't we all been reading too much Iron Reich Propaganda? Man, that guy's a master prop minister. And I like the Motto of the Manegarm. Did it come standard? Now to the subject of the kick ### mech you've built yourself... well, I'm pretty much speechless. Yes indeed. I'm rambling again. Oh well, it totally rocks. If you visit my site, you find emptiness. I'm ashamed, none of my cool stuff is up yet. :-( Build more cool stuff, ya hear? EMAIL ME! - Phil

WOW Scorp, I knew you wouldn't mess it up (sorry for the pressure ;-)) This is a truly great MOC, much superior to anything else you have ever made... even if your concepts did look a little anime-ish ;-)
my only complaint is, it needs more black, like on some of the grey joints, it would look better if it was a little more solidly colored